My 1989 Grand Marquis GS sedan "Ebyt"

[Louis]

Many excellent threads on here regarding body mount swap, just search around.

That's going to be my big project next year on my '87.

[HiFiMerc]

@HiFiMerc: I'm not totally sure. No service history or mileage logbook, haha. Any other ways to check?

Oil pressure gauge maybe. Give you an idea of the health (or lack of) of the main bearings. An engine with only 72K should hold pretty good oil pressure. one with 172K? Less than stellar more than likely.

[gadget73]

Replace engine light under load sounds more like cooling system problems. Water boiling out of the reservoir goes along with that. If its oil pressure related, and its got oil, it would be much more likely to come on at idle or very low engine speeds. Its also normal for it to flicker on and off at stops if thats whats going on. At 72k, if it has the original radiator, I would not be surprised if its heavily caked up with deposits. Also, the fan clutch has to be in good shape or you'll have problems. Sounds like time for at least a cooling system flush if it hasn't been done recently. Also, if the thermostat has not been changed in known memory, do that. Watch under the hood while you have someone shut the hot engine off. If the fan keeps spinning for a while, its done. It should normally stop spinning with less than 1 revolution.



The body mounts aren't going to "pop". At absolute worst, it could let the body move about an inch out of position. Mine were horribly bad, and it would actually do this. Depending on the direction of the last hard turn, you could measure from frame to inside the front fender and see an inch of change one way or the other. There was no chance the chassis was going to come out from under the car though. There are 16 bolts holding that together.

[87gtVIC]

Mounts are solid rubber. I second the no popping happening. Odds are they are due for a change but it is not something entirely necessary to do.

[Louis]

I have seen the result of popped out body mounts on a couple occasions (fortunately not in my case).

The result of constant drag racing, hard cornering, etc of a well worn car. The bolts snap, bushing falls out and next thing you know, the body is sitting off-kilter upon the frame. Not a pretty sight.

[pantera77]

If its 172K, I wouldn't be doing any WOT runs.

Even if you had a completely re-built drive train, your body mounts (assuming they're original and very old) could pop under WOT with the body then ending up cockeyed on the frame.

BS tech. I've made numerous 1/4 mile passes @ 260+k. If it's gonna blow, it's gonna blow. Body mounts don't explode. At worse they cause excessive body movement. Hell, you could remove all the body mounts and go frame to body like most derby guys go, and at worse it would make the ride harsher.

[Hearsesrock427]

@HiFiMerc: That's why I want to get my digidash installed ASAP. It's off an '86 Cougar, and it has (among other nifty things) an oil pressure indicator. Nice vertical bar system. Will DEFINITELY come in handy later. I can more or less check the expiration date on my lopo, and know to budget for a rebuild + displacement increase ahead of time. I'll also switch to the HO firing order, and throw in the SBF cam from Comp Cams. We know now that it's a cooling issue, not an oil pressure issue. As soon as I get the main cooling system overhauled and the tranny upgraded (B&M racing converter, stacked plate tranny cooler of some sort), I'm getting the long tubes, true duals, and digidash installed. The headers will definitely be in my possession by the time all this other stuff is sorted out, so it'll be a nice clean sweep.

@gadget: Should I just replace the radiator, main cooling fan, and fan clutch while we're there to be safe? I want better than stock, if possible. Any brands to stick to? Any specific type of radiator and cooling fan to go for?

@Louis: Except for the fact that the '89 has 72,526 miles. And while I do engage in some hooning, it's by no means a way of life for Ebyt. Most of the time, I just gently cruise around, take in the sights, and do mini-photoshoots. That's the case for at LEAST 80% of the time. I know better than to beat on something that's not been built to handle it. This is why I don't drive fast on twisty roads, do WOT runs, or drag race every time I go and drive.

Am I annoyed that the three previous owners didn't do BASIC FUCKING MAINTENANCE and flush the coolant every ~35,000 miles? Extremely. Which is why I'm not letting it go on any longer. The buck stops right here. It's amazing how justified rage can motivate you to do good things for your car. I'm going above and beyond the basic qualifications for cooling. This car's been through enough neglect already FFS.

In the future, I'll just get these done on my second panther. Before I even start throwing go-fast parts it. I'll change the oil, oil filter, fuel filter, spark plugs, spark plug wires, air filter. Then I'll drive to my go-to place for fixing broken stuff, and get ALL the fluids flushed. Also will get the cooling system beefed up. Might as well get it done then, while they're there, so to speak.

TLDR: It's no use having go-fast parts on a pretty car if you can't go fast without breaking something. Get your car prepped for the high intensity driving you plan on doing BEFORE you actually do it. Seriously.

@87GTvic & pantera: Thank you! Glad to see I'm not the only one who has priorities in order. While the body mounts are likely a bit crusty, there are much more pressing issues to tend to. And it's not even that big of a deal in retrospect. I do plan on replacing them- thinking I can do with when I get the suspension overhauled (poly bushings anyone?). It'll be a LOT easier with the body off the frame.

[88Vic]

What exhaust are you running in the mean time? If it's single at the very least get the stock muffler out of it to let it breathe some. The stock H-pipe is a bit expensive if it's temporary but cutting a muffler out and adding some flex pipe and clamps is very cheap.

[Hearsesrock427]

@88Vic: Running the awful stock Y-pipe until the long tubes get here. I already bought the piping for an H-piped true dual exhaust from the headers back. It's sitting in the trunk, actually. Been there for a long, long, time. Haha. I should probably move all that stuff back into the parts bin/pile in the basement! Tonight.

Part links & #s below
Downpipes : http://www.summitracing.com/parts/psm-82-1118/overview/
Mid-pipe: http://www.summitracing.com/parts/su...view/make/ford
After mid-pipe thing: http://www.rockauto.com/catalog/rafr...&partnum=54016
After mid-pipe thing2: http://www.rockauto.com/catalog/rafr...&partnum=54017
Miscellenaeous tail pipe extensions: http://www.rockauto.com/catalog/rafr...&partnum=41394
Impala SS style tail pipes: http://www.rockauto.com/catalog/moreinfo.php?pk=133230

****Note on the downpipes!**** I bought them when I thought I would run shitty shorty headers. Need to get it bent flat-wise now, seeing as how I'll be running long tubes.

[Louis]

BS tech. I've made numerous 1/4 mile passes @ 260+k. If it's gonna blow, it's gonna blow. Body mounts don't explode. At worse they cause excessive body movement. Hell, you could remove all the body mounts and go frame to body like most derby guys go, and at worse it would make the ride harsher.

Uhhh, its not "tech" but rather metallurgical reality. Apparently you have never witnessed a car body ending up askew on its frame after numerous body mounts have popped and failed. Study up on metallurgy 101 vis a vis metal fatigue and stress.

I'm sure Hearsesrock427, rather than going derby style would rather invest his time and energy into a proper body mount replacement project sometime in the future.

[Hearsesrock427]

I'm sure Hearsesrock427, rather than going derby style would rather invest his time and energy into a proper body mount replacement project sometime in the future.

Among the little things to be tended to next summer will be big brake swap. Disc brakes at the rear, bigger discs out front! Stiffer, heavier duty suspension components all around. Much easier to do suspension work with the body off the frame..... also a good excuse to do body mounts. It's gonna be sick. At that point, it's going to be mandatory, thanks to all that extra power that my beloved lopo will be putting out. Remember kiddies, going fast has to be balanced with stopping fast.

[88Vic]

@88Vic: Running the awful stock Y-pipe until the long tubes get here. I already bought the piping for an H-piped true dual exhaust from the headers back. It's sitting in the trunk, actually. Been there for a long, long, time. Haha. I should probably move all that stuff back into the parts bin/pile in the basement! Tonight.

Part links & #s below
Downpipes : http://www.summitracing.com/parts/psm-82-1118/overview/
Mid-pipe: http://www.summitracing.com/parts/su...view/make/ford
After mid-pipe thing: http://www.rockauto.com/catalog/rafr...&partnum=54016
After mid-pipe thing2: http://www.rockauto.com/catalog/rafr...&partnum=54017
Miscellenaeous tail pipe extensions: http://www.rockauto.com/catalog/rafr...&partnum=41394
Impala SS style tail pipes: http://www.rockauto.com/catalog/moreinfo.php?pk=133230

****Note on the downpipes!**** I bought them when I thought I would run shitty shorty headers. Need to get it bent flat-wise now, seeing as how I'll be running long tubes.

Just an open y-pipe? A guy in my apartment building has an 82 Town Car with the y-pipe and the muffler cut off but nothing after it. It sounds decent, not as good as my stock duals but way better than stock.

Also if you can just return those first 2 (looks like both are H-pipes, shouldn't need both), just get 1 short H-pipe, BBK makes a short Mustang H-pipe to bolt up to Mustang longtubes. The problem is since it's all made for Mustangs there's no guarantee it'll fit without modifying, but a regular Mustang H-pipe fits so i'd think a shorty would too but maybe not.

[slack]

Among the little things to be tended to next summer will be big brake swap. Disc brakes at the rear, bigger discs out front! Stiffer, heavier duty suspension components all around. Much easier to do suspension work with the body off the frame..... also a good excuse to do body mounts. It's gonna be sick. At that point, it's going to be mandatory, thanks to all that extra power that my beloved lopo will be putting out. Remember kiddies, going fast has to be balanced with stopping fast.

With these cars, it's actually pretty easy to do the suspension work with the car as is. Everything is really pretty accessible. There are only two things I can thing of that are sort of a pain in the ass to get to and that's the top nut on the rear shocks and the top bushing above the differential if you're replacing it. From what I've seen from others who did the body bushings, they only raised the car an few inches off the frame so you don't have to disconnect brake lines, fuel lines, steering, etc.

[gadget73]

@gadget: Should I just replace the radiator, main cooling fan, and fan clutch while we're there to be safe? I want better than stock, if possible. Any brands to stick to? Any specific type of radiator and cooling fan to go for?

.

The fan is metal. Not really anything to go bad there. I'd have a close look inside the radiator after rinsing it out. If the ends of the tubes have crusty growth, its probably got deeper issues and a replacement wouldn't be the most terrible idea. The fan clutch you can replace without feeling too bad about, but me being the cheapass I am would watch it do a spin test first. I hate replacing parts that aren't bad, but I sure don't feel bad about replacing them if they are done for. I would probably do the thermostat if you don't know when it was last done. They last a long time, but in a crapped up cooling system with questionable maintenance, its a cheap piece of insurance.

[Hearsesrock427]

@88Vic: I considered that as an interim/middle-road option. But I don't drive the car much to warrant that. Plus it'll cost me money that will be wasted- I'll be getting everything from the headers to the tips replaced (hopefully) soon, so I might as well just wait it out. I can deal with boring/nonexistant engine noise for now. Haha.

I too was thinking about the reundant H-pipe shenanigans. Seems kinda odd that there'd be two of them- one in the downpipes and one in the midpipes. I'm 99% sure I don't need the downpipes. I'd return them, but I know for a fact I tossed all the paperwork out from the exhaust parts. I was just so set on that crappy shorty header setup, haha. No worries though- I'll be selling them CHEAP at SF2015. Asking price? $60. Just want to be rid of them!

@slack: I like it. A little jacking (plus Canadian jackstands for safety, naturally) goes a long way in access to parts. Better than digging a big-ass trench in your lawn! Haha. I'm sure my friend Nate has all the tools to get into those hard to reach spots too. Should be able to get it all done in an afternoon assuming all the parts are there. Winning!

@gadget: I'll have the shop test the fan clutch when I bring her in. If the fan clutch is bad, I'll have them replace it. We'll see. But the radiator? I definitely want to replace it. I don't want to take any more chances with cooling. Need something better than stock; I plan on some very hard driving before I tuck her away for the winter.

Found this on Summit Racing: http://www.summitracing.com/parts/sum-381331/overview/

It's a universal (means it should work with Ebyt), and it has a built-in tranny cooler line. Probably insufficient for hard driving and hard shifting, but should be fine for the gentle driving I'll hopefully be doing on my way to the tranny shop next week. I'm assuming I'll need to get that tiny-ass tranny cooler line bypassed when I get the dedicated stacked-plate tranny cooler? Or can I leave it hookoed up, and have double-action tranny cooling?